Printable View
I am planning on doing some camping for week or two at a time this coming year. I would like to know how you guys keep your minnows alive when camping for those of you that use minnows that is. I was thinking about a heavy duty Styrofoam cooler with Hush Bubbles as a air supply. Let me know what you have found that works the best for you. Thanks
If I'm going to stay that many days I like to use the floating minnow buckets or a floating net to keep the bait alive, works well for me!
If your not going to leave your boat in the water where you can leave the buckets or floating net tied to I leave em tied to docks or in near by brush out of the sun, if you keep them in an ice chest just keep em in the shade and add ice to keep water cool from time to time and an aerator is a must if it's during hot weather !
What greg said !!!!!!!! !
My cooler that they ride in in the boat does fine, main thing is to keep the water fresh, if you are pumping plenty of air temps aren't near as big an issue. Got a 50 quart cooler and can hold a couple pounds of minners for a while.
Get a can of Bait Saver and add some to the water. If you have 110 volts available, get a bubbler from the Walmart aquarium section. A 2 stone is not much over 10 bucks. If the temps are hot, frozen water bottles will help. A big styrofoam cooler really works well.
Also, if putting them in a cooler, fill the cooler with water and leave the lid off for a couple of days, prior to putting the minnows in to allow any chlorine (if your water source is city water and not a well) in the water to evaporate out of the water.
I use the aquarium treatment and just put it in, add water, add minners.
I use an RV water filter to put water in a cooler. No chemicals needed with the filter as it removes the chlorine and most other contaminants from any water source. You can get the RV filters at Walmart. I use a medical oxygen bottle with an oxygen diffusing stone and a pediatric regulator set at 1/32, or 1/16 for 2-3 pounds of minnows for 4/5 days at a time. You can dip stale water out of the cooler with a small bucket, and add lake water back to keep the water fresh if they don't have running water near your boat to use the filter with. An air bubbler will also work, but the oxygen is better because it doesn't run off your battery. You can get an inexpensive power inverter and run a 110v aquarium aerator from your boat, or you can use the 12v models. The 12v models just don't last as long as the 110's.
BTW, set like I said, a medium size medical oxygen bottle will last about 4 months if only used on weekends.
This setup is what most of the tournament guys are using. They also keep their tournament fish in the oxygen so they are alive and hardy at weigh in. I have 3 coolers set up this way. Two are 60qt Cubes with retractable handles and wheels, and the other is a 110qt cooler I got at SAMs Club, and it has a sliding handle and wheels. Put the cooler in the boat or truck and fill with water. I put a floating minnow bucket in my cooler for the minnows so they are easier to catch. :-)
I use a cheap collapsable clothes basket. Wire tie a piece of water weenie in the top. About 6-8 bucks. Keeps minnows alive indefinitely. I put it in the livewell when motoring then back in the lake while I fish. Works for me year round.
:hesaid:hesaidQuote:
Originally Posted by RCC
I bought a kit from Grizzly Jig to convert a orange igloo cooler to a bait keeper. I will post pics of project.
Oxygen?Quote:
Originally Posted by Billy E
It has a oxygenator on it what ever that is. You want to try it out Saturday? Its called a Longerlife bait kit.
Its possible.....Thought you were grounded until after the new year :biggrinQuote:
Originally Posted by Billy E
I read a little about it....says it has a oxygen adapter.....Does that mean you have to get the oxygen bottle?
Be interested to see how the oxygenator works. I have one but I haven't used it. Still use O2 with the pediatric regulator. I can refill my bottles off the big bottles in the shop.Quote:
Originally Posted by Billy E
I just got one of these from Cabela's free points. I use their credit card for gasoline.
http://www.cabelas.com/catalog/produ...out/basket.jsp
It works great but haven't used it in summer yet. I have the Frabill Minnow Saver 5 gallon bucket with aerator that has worked ok for years. I think it takes a larger quantity of water than most folks use in small buckets, though.
I have a minnow vat that I got years ago from Cabela's, but they quit selling them, and others have asked me where I got it, and I've done internet searches for years and can't find them. I remember it was made by a company in Oregon.......seems like Westco? Something like that. It is oval and originally it used a minnow agitator like this one:
http://www.champlinnetco.com/minnow-...gitator-12v-r/
Though it was 110 v and worked great.......it didn't last but about 2 years. I keep it outside, no other place for it. I now use two separate Wally World stone agitators and they work great. If the air temp is way up there, nothing will keep minnows alive for a week.........nothing I've tried or can afford, short of dumping ice in it every 4 hours. But this setup will keep minnows alive for weeks and weeks if it's not hot..........and will keep them several days if it is, and I work at it.
The vat is not special, other than it's well insulated and painted blue inside (calms the minnows). Adding an aspirin to your minnow bucket helps too, an old trick I learned many years ago from a good man here in Conway that has passed on, that sold minnows and treated me right.
Anything that keeps them cool, dark, and adds oxygen will help. If I had opposable thumbs like most humans, I could probably build a decent one, I've seen homemade minnow vats that are neat!! But anything I build looks like a Rube Goldberg contraption and doesn't work.
I do think that finding minnows is getting to be harder and harder, so keeping them alive is paramount. I'm so old school......I love to 'read' that cork! It's my therapy. It's what I envision when I'm having some medical procedure where I need to think about something else!! I'm not opposed to catching them some other way, but never have been good at it.
Hope this helps.
I'd sure like to dunk a few minnows now that deer season is over.
It dont use oxygen. Not sure. I was going to use that cooler for minnows anyway.
Randy - I am ready to hit the water.
10/4 Billy....Not sure about this weekend yet. Will try to let you know something by Thursday.Quote:
Originally Posted by Billy E
The oxygenator makes it's own oxygen when hooked to a power source and covered with water. It's an Oxygen Generator.
Boy you know some sh......t!!!Quote:
Originally Posted by BigRiverMarine
Like!!!!!!!Quote:
Originally Posted by hawgdog
Getting an education reading Crappie.com.Quote:
Originally Posted by BigRiverMarine
Thanks.
I got a bucket called, Frabill Troll Flow, it seems to do the job, so just leave it in the lake, river, etc. all the time. Just make sure it's nicley tied somewhere! cheers & good luck!
The lake has plenty of oxygen. I prefer to keep my minners in the floating bucket in the lake.Quote:
Originally Posted by Crappie Greg
I've sold quite a few of them to bass boys for their live wells!!! The ones I used were about 150 each.Quote:
Originally Posted by hawgdog
http://keepfishalive.com
When you go to the site, look at the picture of the Oxygenator. You'll see a silver thing in the center of it. That's the water activated sensor that turns it on. When you empty the live well or bucket, or whatever, the unit turns off.
Pffft Hawgdog!!! :-):-):-)
I have two boats one I use as my bass boat, and the other I use as my crappie boat, the bass boat has a oxygenator in it, an it does a great job of keeping my fish alive, you can tell which end the unit is in, for all the fish will be next to that oxygenator. But since I won't have my bass boat when I'am crappie fishing, and I won't have all my minnows in the boat at once I will need a stationary place to keep bulk of my minnows like at camp, an just pull out what I will need for the day an leave the rest at camp. Some of the places I camp there is a lot of people and I am afraid if I leave all my minnows tied up in the lake someone will help themselves. That Is why I am seeking advice on my stationary minnow vat at camp. Finding out what is the best way on keeping them alive at camp.
The Igloo water cooler and kit from Grizzly Jig is the way to go then.